Pam Grout: Again, I'm a big one for letting fate lead the way. I like venturing out on my own, although it's not for everyone. You could buy a eurail pass and get around easily. I always do that and get suggestions on where to go, what to do from my fellow travelers. It's a good way to practice language skills and meet people and get recommendations on the VERY best places--straight from the horse's mouth. It sorta depends on the personality of your fellow travelers.

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Austin, TX: First of all, LOVE the mag!!!! My girlfriends and have been doing girlfriend getaways for about 20 years. We are all turning 50 next year and are in the planning stages of a med cruise. Question: What do you recommend as the best excursion trips? Any "unknown" places?? Beaches?? etc. Look forward to hearing from you!! Linda

Pam Grout: Hey Austin--Happy 50th! Me and my crew of girlfriends are also turning 50 this year. We're looking at all sorts of options. But a mediterranean cruise sounds fabulous. Not having done one, I'm hoping you'll report back to me.

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Glassboro, NJ: I'd like to go to Salem, MA the first week of October with my sisters for some Halloween fun. How can we do this for three days relatively cheap? We'll be driving and we range in age from thirty five to forty five years old.

Pam Grout: Salem is great during October--they celebrate Halloween the whole month. There are costume balls and psychic fairs and all sorts of bewitching to be had. Lot of the events are free and if you really want to do cheap, you can stay in college residence halls at Salem State College

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Helena, AL Seven of us middle-aged girl friends will be sharing a villa in Tuscany the second week in October. Three or four of us are staying another week and have yet to decide where we might go, except for CincaTerra (sic). What are your suggestions for places of interest, good food, wine, shopping and scenery? We arrive and depart from Florence.

Pam Grout: Here's an idea. I'm big on doing girlfriend getaways with a theme--read Under the Tuscan Sun (maybe you already have) and try to recreate. A friend of mine did a recreation of Field of Dreams (complete with video camera) and had the time of her life. And as for good food and wine, shopping and scenery, is there a place in Tuscany without good food and wine, shopping and scenery????

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Pittsburgh, PA: Can you tell me the best time of the year for specials, deals, promo's to visit Las Vegas? Also if I wanted to go to Sams Town or Laughlin, what should I expect compared to the Las Vegas Strip? Thanks

Pam Grout: If you can swing going to Vegas during the week, you can get all sorts of deals. The big hotels are more expensive on weekends. You can save up to $150 if you can go on say a Tuesday.

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Jersey City, NJ: My friend Brandy and I (both in our early 30's) are starting to plan this year's girl-trip. We don't have a lot of money to spend or a lot of time (probably a long weekend from Thursday night until Monday night). We'll probably be traveling in the middle of August. We've been considering Montreal for a while and traditionally prefer to bypass the usual touristy things and go straight for local favorite haunts, restaurants, shops and scenery. What would you recommend we do and see while we're there? Thanks for your help! Michele

Pam Grout: Good for you for recognizing that the local's haunts are the best place to really get to know a place. Montreal has all sorts of interesting neighborhoods--Greek, Jamaican, Haitian, etc. And, as for those 100 bells, you can probably hear them wherever you go in the city. There's a book called Quebec: Off the Beaten Path that might come in hand. If you have time, head out to the Laurentians, one of my favorite places. It's only 45 minutes away and the guys, who would be Jack and Paul, are Jacques and Pierre in the Laurentians.

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La Grange, TX: Four girlfriends are planning a trip to Italy in the fall of 2007. We plan to stay around 14 to 16 days. Of course, we would like to see as much of Italy as we could. We all in our 50. We will be flying out of George Bush in Houston, Texas. Mary

Pam Grout: That sounds like a fabulous trip--14 to 16 days. Get some shopping done in Milan. What you see in Milan will be in style in America (and everywhere else) in a year. This is the city that international garmentos go to find goods they will tote back to Hong Kong to reproduce as expensive copies. Elegant boutiques and posh cafes are found in charming Victorian-era buildings. Be sure to check out La Rinascente, Milan's own department store and Provers, a must for vintage wine selection.

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Seattle, WA: As a high school graduation present, I am taking my eighteen year old granddaughter to Italy next Spring. She wants to go tourless, on our own. I am somewhat intimidated, and I am clueless how to start, although I did take beginner's Italian this Spring. Although I will be 75 years old, I am in very good shape. Can you help me with a plan for a ten day trip? Where do I start? My granddaughter is majoring in art. I don't want to rob a bank to make this possible!

Pam Grout: What a nice grandma you are. That is one of nicest graduation gifts I can think of. If your daughter wants to go tourless, she must have some ideas of what she wants to see. And if she's majoring in art, she probably already knows the best places--Rome, Florence, well, the whole of Italy is one big art gallery. Instead of going completely tourless, how about going with one of those companies that will put together a special itinerary just for you--tell them what you want and at least get a hotel booked in two or three cities you want to visit. You can get the museum tickets while you're there and you'll both get what you're looking for. You'll have a tad bit of security and she'll get her sense of tourless.

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Washington, DC: Going to Vegas on Wednesday 6/14/06. Where is the best place to get spa services and purchase show tickets? Thanks

Pam Grout: If all else fails, you can contact the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Their phone number is 702/892-0711 and their website is lvcva.com. Good luck and win some big money for me.

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Pam Grout: Thanks for all your fantastic questions. Here's to lots of great girlfriends getaways with all your favorite people.

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